Insider tips from 5 experienced Facilitators

The brother of a friend of ours once said “What does a facilitator do? Don’t they just use blue tac and stick posters on walls?”

Well we do use a lot of post it notes and blue tac, but we know that you know, facilitating a workshop involves oh-so-much-more!

After hundreds of strategy workshops, leadership offsites, planning sessions and difficult conversations, our facilitators have learned a lot.

Not from books. Not from theory. But from standing in front of rooms full of people trying to solve real problems, make real decisions and create real change.

So I asked my favourite facilitators a simple question:

"What's the single best facilitation advice you've learned?"

Their answers weren't about fancy techniques or frameworks (but we can give you those if you’d like!). Here’s what they said:

Tina: It's Not About You, it all about them.

Tina's advice gets to the heart of great facilitation.

"It's not about you. It's all about getting a great outcome for them."

When facilitators stop worrying about their performance and focus entirely on helping the group succeed, something changes.

People recognise the authenticity, trust builds, energy lifts and great outcomes can be achieved.

Tina also shared another lesson she's learned over the years:

"Don't let bad behaviour go unchallenged. Including from the boss!"

Facilitators build credibility when they're prepared to respectfully challenge behaviours that undermine the conversation.

The team notices and they trust you more because of it.

Blake: Make It Fun

Blake's advice is refreshingly practical.

"If it's fun, it's easy to get things done."

People often assume that serious topics require serious workshops, but that’s not necessarily true.

Energy creates momentum and momentum creates engagement.

Engagement creates results.

That doesn't mean turning every workshop into a game. It means creating an environment where people genuinely want to participate.

Ben: Create Safety Early

Ben believes the first few minutes of a workshop are often the most important.

"Create a safe environment early using an activity linked to the topic."

People contribute more openly when they feel connected to each other and connected to the conversation.

A well-chosen story, question or reflection exercise can immediately change the quality of participation for the rest of the session.

The best facilitators don't start with content, they start with connection.

Mel: Play to Both the Head and the Heart

Mel's advice highlights something many facilitators often miss.

"Encourage challenge and debate in the room to drive commitment when people walk out."

Constructive tension isn't something to avoid - it's often where the best conversations happen.

People don't commit simply because they understand an idea intellectually. They commit when they've had the opportunity to test it, challenge it, discuss it and connect with it personally.

As Mel says:

"Results come when you play to both the head and the heart."

Jenny: Don't Do for the Group What the Group Can Do for Itself

This has been my favourite facilitation principle for years.

“When you're facilitating, it's tempting to jump in with answers, solve problems or rescue awkward moments.”

Resist! Instead, ask more questions, be comfortable with silence and encourage participants to bounce ideas off each other.

Your job isn't to be the smartest person in the room. Your job is to help the room be at its smartest.

One Final Thought

As you read these tips, it may strike you that nobody talked about workshop templates, sticky notes or facilitation tricks (but we can do that of course!).

Instead, they talked about: Trust. Participation. Authenticity. Listening. Courage. Connection.

Maybe that's because great facilitation is more than running workshops. It's about helping groups have conversations they couldn't have had on their own to get outcomes that are better than what any one person could build.

And that's a skill worth developing.

These are exactly the kinds of practical, real-world lessons we'll be exploring in our Facilitating with Confidence program. Not theory, just the practical techniques that experienced facilitators use every day to help groups achieve better outcomes. Upcoming dates are on our Events page

PS. We did ask our SpringCo AI Agent for their perspective, which is spot on!

Focus on the outcome, not the agenda.

The agenda is just a vehicle. Great facilitators constantly ask themselves:

"Is what we're doing right now helping this group make progress towards the outcome we came here to achieve?"

If the answer is no, adapt.

To learn more, please contact us.